Dear Neighbor,

The 2024 Legislative Session concluded on Thursday March 7^th, 2024. This was my first Short Session, and my second session as your State Representative for House District 45.

I want to extend my sincere gratitude to everyone who engaged in the process this session. To my constituents who wrote in, called in, and stopped by the office to share their thoughts on the issues and legislation important to you, thank you.

But the work is not done! I'm ready to roll my up sleaves up and get to work during the Interim! And I hope to keep hearing from YOU, my community, as I tackle the issues that are important to us. 

Every first Friday of the month, my office hosts a Power to the People constituent gathering at my in-district office. I would love to see you for our April gathering on Friday, 4/5 @5:30pm at my district office: 4526 NE Sandy Blvd, Portland, OR 97213. We invite you to share your concerns and policy ideas alongside friendly neighbors.

Looking ahead, we also have our Power to the People events for May 3rd and June 7th at 5:30pm, please add these events to your calendar now! Due to regulations, we will be unable to send an email reminding people about this event for May, and this will be our last newsletter until May.

ICYMI: 2024 SESSION RECAP!

This session, I moved two priority bills through the legislative process. Unfortunately, neither piece of legislation made it through to law. Given the fast pace of the 33 day short session, it is common for complex bills to die. Often, bills require more than one session to be worked before they pass.

HB 4096, Firearm Holding and Suicide Prevention would have enabled people having suicidal ideations to create time and distance between themselves and their firearm(s) by providing a place they can be temporarily stored. I’m not giving up on saving lives, and look forward to working with stakeholders to reintroduce this life-saving piece of legislation in the 2025 session.

HB 4097, Expungement Reform would have closed loopholes and inefficiencies for criminal justice impacted people trying to clear their criminal record. We worked with a strong team of advocates, including the Clean Slate Coalition, to fix the court system and give people a pathway to housing, employment education, and more. Unfortunately, this bill did not move forward this session.

While I am disappointed by this outcome, I am ready continue this work with stakeholders to reintroduce this important piece of life-changing legislation in the 2025 Session. To everyone who emailed, called, testified, submitted written testimony, and helped advocate for this bill, thank you so much for your support.

Bills I Co-Sponsored

In all, we made great progress this legislative session. I am particularly proud of HB 4083, “the COAL act”, which I was a co-Chief Sponsor on with Representative Khanh Pham. This piece of legislation safeguards the Economic and Environmental future of Oregon by requiring divestment from coal companies and funds containing coal companies, and I was excited to see it pass both chambers.

I was also happy to see the passage of SB 1596, the Right to Repair bill. As a co-Sponsor of the bill, I am excited by what it represents for small repair businesses and consumers in Oregon. I am also excited by the potential for reducing e-waste leading to better environmental outcomes for our state.

Last week, I also voted in support of HB 4002 and its associated funding bill, HB 5204. The Oregon Drug Intervention Plan will give providers and law enforcement the tools they need to keep people safe and save lives. We will also be investing more than $200 million in urgently expanding treatment, prevention, and strengthening the connection between law enforcement and treatment to get people more efficiently from crisis to stability.

The Emergency Housing Stability and Production Package

Every Oregonian deserves a safe and affordable place to call home. That’s why in 2024, House Democrats are taking action to address the homelessness and affordable housing crises by passing The Emergency Housing Stability and Production Package. This package (Senate Bill 1530 and Senate Bill 1537) addresses Oregon’s immediate housing and homelessness needs by funding homeless shelters to get people off the streets and into shelter, supporting renters, and boosting housing production and infrastructure.

This package leverages our limited state resources to make significant investments in our major homelessness relief and affordable housing goals.

I hope to see you at one of our upcoming constituent events, and please reach out to my office any time!

In solidarity,

Representative Thuy Tran
House District 45

Capitol Phone: 503-986-1445
Capitol Address: 900 Court St. NE, H-285, Salem, Oregon 97301
Email: Rep.ThuyTran@oregonlegislature.gov
Website: https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/tran​